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Wouldn’t it be great to win the lottery and spend some of the winnings on a new state-of-the-art kitchen? If we won, we’d install granite countertops, hardwood floors, not one but two high-end ovens, an island, a walk-in pantry stocked with every kitchen appliance known to mankind … you get the picture. Our dream kitchen would be designed with efficiency in mind. But you don’t need an expensive kitchen makeover to get dinner on the table quickly. In fact, for less than $200, you can stock your kitchen with shortcut tools and be just as speedy. Here are a dozen items no Meal Makeover Mom should be without:

• A Wet Paper Towel: Placing a wet paper towel under a cutting board stops it from sliding all over the counter as you slice and dice. A stable cutting board gets the job done quicker and it’s also a lot safer.
• A Sharp Chef’s Knife: Dull knives just don’t cut it when you’re in a hurry. Besides the fact that they’re more dangerous — you’re more likely to cut yourself using a dull knife than a sharp knife – it takes a lot longer to slice, dice, and chop. You can buy a decent quality chef’s knife at any kitchen supply store starting at about $30.00. It’s a great investment.
• Kitchen Shears: Trimming the fat from chicken and meat can be difficult, even with the sharpest of knives. We rely on kitchen shears (a.k.a. scissors) to get this job done. They also come in handy when you’re snipping herbs from your vegetable garden, cutting tortillas in half, and cutting bags of frozen vegetables open (it’s a lot less messy than ripping them open and having half the contents fly out onto the kitchen floor).
• A Good Quality Vegetable Peeler: The old wives tale that peeling carrots removes most of the nutrients is just that … a wives tale. The outer skin on many vegetables is actually quite bitter, not to mention dirty, so peeling can often improve the flavor of your food. A good quality peeler – versus that old hand-me-down from 1953 — peels produce in a flash and costs less than $5.00.
• A Box Grater: This four-sided grater has different-sized holes on each panel and is easier to handle and less messy to use than the one-sided washboard type. It’s ideal for shredding a carrot (it takes less than one minute) and grating fresh ginger root.
• Two Plastic Cutting Boards: To prevent cross-contamination (the spread of bacteria from one food to another) use one cutting board for raw meats, poultry, and seafood only and a second cutting board for ready-to-eat foods such as fruits, vegetables and breads. We prefer a flexible cutting board for our ready-to-eat foods because it’s easy to lift the board and transfer the contents – diced bell peppers, bread cubes, broccoli florets — into whatever we’re cooking. Another benefit to two cutting boards … you don’t have to waste time washing them between uses. Whether you use a plastic cutting board or a wooden one is a personal preference. We prefer a plastic cutting board because it is easy to clean and you can even run it through the dishwasher.
• A Nonstick Skillet: A nonstick skillet (a.k.a. fry pan) allows you to cook with a lot less fat. By no means do we advocate fat-free cooking but it’s nice to know you don’t have to use ½ cup of oil every time you sauté something. Nonstick skillets make cleanup a breeze. We use a 12-inch skillet for everything from browning ground beef for tacos to cooking pancakes. A smaller 8 to 10-inch skillet comes in handy for cooking omelets or single grilled cheese sandwiches. You should be able to find a good quality large nonstick skillet for about $30.00.
• Adjustable Vegetable Steamer: Say goodbye to mushy vegetables. For under $10.00 you can buy a steamer and use it for cooking your family’s favorite vegetables quickly and easily.
• A Mini Food Processor: A mini food processor is a great time saver when chopping nuts or crushing corn flakes. If you do a lot of cooking, a full-size food processor may be worth the investment. A simple food chopper is also an option for chopping nuts, onions, garlic, and other veggies.
• Blender: It’s hard to make a fruit smoothie or to puree our Cheesy Broccoli Soup or Orange Soup without a blender. Expect to pay a minimum of about $30.00.
• Whisks: Whisks come in many sizes and can do more than beat eggs. We use ours for mixing dry ingredients together instead of sifting and for incorporating flour into milk for thickening sauces.
• Instant-Read Meat Thermometer: How many times have you wondered if your pork roast, hamburger, or chicken was thoroughly cooked? Take the guesswork out of cooking meat with an inexpensive (about $10.00) instant-read thermometer. This tool helps to avoid over and undercooking.

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